Difficult goodbye

STOCKTON - Mercedes "Sulli" Sullivan will never be the same. Seven weeks in Liberia will do that.

Kevin Parrish

STOCKTON - Mercedes "Sulli" Sullivan will never be the same. Seven weeks in Liberia will do that.

She was supposed to be there for two years, but the Ebola crisis forced the Peace Corps to bring her and 107 other volunteers home. Still, she immersed herself in the culture and in the community of Kakata.

"The people there are so warm and welcoming," said the 23-year-old Sullivan. "They are so resilient and persevering. The narrative out of West Africa ... that is not West Africa. It is so much more than viruses and poverty. I want to help change the narrative."

A week ago, she was just about finished with her Peace Corps training to become a middle school math teacher. Today, she's living with mom in Stockton and looking for a job.

She understands the Peace Corps' decision to leave, but she can't hide her disappointment.

"It's hard to come home to a country where people want me quarantined," Sullivan said. "Friday, I was supposed to get my teaching assignment. Instead, I was on a plane coming home.

"It's hard coming back knowing that I am leaving people behind. They didn't have the option of getting out."

Sullivan, a 2009 Lincoln High School graduate, bonded quickly with her host family and embraced their culture. And for Liberians, family is everything.

"It's huge there," she said. "I joined them as a daughter, and the next day I was in the marketplace with my host mom and she introduced me as her daughter - not her host daughter and not as a Peace Corps volunteer from America.

"As her daughter."

Liberia was uniquely formed as a country, in the early 19th century with assistance from the American Colonization Society. The official language is English, although Sullivan discovered quickly that it was different from the English she spoke.

And that made communication with her host family challenging for awhile. Some of what she learned in seven weeks:

» Current: The word used for electricity. Her family was considered upper middle class, but "current" wasn't always available.

» Friend: The word can represent a romantic relationship. Once, when Sullivan introduced two male companions as friends, she drew giggles from those around her.

» Born: A word used differently to describe members of a family. Sullivan was a daughter to David and Korto Keigar who "born" her.

» Small, small finger: The term used for the pinky finger.

» Mango: A plum.

The language cadence also is different.

"When we end a sentence, it's usually on a high pitch," Sullivan said. "For them, it is lower. You really have to listen."

She got plenty of help from her "parents" in Liberia and their four sons ranging in age from 4 to 18.

The decision to evacuate the American volunteers came as the Ebola epidemic forced the nation to close its borders and declare a national state of emergency. So far, 255 people in Liberia have died from the disease.

Sullivan spent enough time in the West African nation to know that she wants to go back, hopefully with the Peace Corps. If not, she vows to return on her own.

Part of that desire is driven by the way Liberia said good-bye.

"It was very hard for them - and me," Sullivan said. "There are more dry eyes at a funeral. I wanted to tell my host family before the Corps had its meeting with all the host families. There was some major water works."

The Peace Corps has a long and cherished relationship with Liberia. Once word was out that the American volunteers were leaving, Sullivan said, it was as if all of Liberia was heart broken.

Sullivan attended Purdue University for two years after graduating from Lincoln High. Then she transferred to the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she received an undergraduate degree in politics last year.

She immediately knew the Peace Corps was next up for her.

"It's been on my mind since high school," Sullivan said. "I always wanted to be a part of it. It's part of my curiosity to see the world."

For now, she is back and keenly aware of hometown needs.

"I love Stockton. You don't hear too many people say that. I'm frustrated about the city - it gets pushed around by a lot of people, including its own residents."

She brings a new global awareness to her thinking these days. In the case of both Liberia and Stockton, she said, "History repeats itself. Why not make it worth repeating."